Indian Demand for Transponders to Outpace Domestic Supply: CASBA

Indian Demand for Transponders to Outpace Domestic Supply: CASBAA
New Delhi, Mar 7, 2013 - (ACN Newswire) - The number of satellite transponders
required by Indian TV broadcasters and DTH operators is expected to double or
triple over the next five years, according to a new report from CASBAA, the
apex Asian association of the cable and satellite television industry.
Entitled "Easing India's Capacity Crunch," CASBAA's report
was released today at the CASBAA India Forum 2013 in New Delhi. Developed
with knowledge support from PwC India, it forecasts that transponders required
by the DTH industry will rise from 73 in 2012 to more than 220 in 2017 to meet
burgeoning demands by Indian consumers.
This rapid growth in transponder demand will be driven by the expected
increase of TV channels in India, fuelled by strong growth of the Indian
television industry over the next few years (expected CAGR of 14%). The
continued proliferation of pay-TV services, coupled with cable digitization,
growth of regional channels and entry of foreign players will provide a fillip
to growth. Given these driving factors, India can potentially have about 1,600
licensed channels by 2017, of which about 1,300 channels, (80% of licensed
channels), are expected to be operational. Further, high growth in the number
of HD channels is expected, due to growth in digital platforms coupled with
increasing penetration of high-end TV sets that support HD viewing
experiences. By 2017, India is likely to have approx 130 HD channels. This
growth in the number of channels will lead to higher demand for C-band and
Ku-band transponders.
In the report, CASBAA and PwC make a series of suggestions for improving the
management of India's satellite industry, to make it more efficient and
market-friendly. The report notes that ISRO (Indian Space Research
Organization), India's agency for operating the country's domestic
satellites, is working hard to launch new satellites and procure additional
spectrum to meet the burgeoning demand. Nevertheless, says the report,
"it is unlikely that any single satellite operator will be able to fulfil
even current demand, let alone the future demand for satellite capacity."
Foreign satellite operators will need to be encouraged to invest in capacity
to serve the Indian market.
"In spite of the urgent requirements for satellite capacity, there are
challenges placing practical restrictions on leasing transponder capacity from
foreign satellite operators by Indian players," said John Medeiros,
CASBAA's Chief Policy Officer. "Key hurdles include procedural
requirements and delays and short contract durations inducing uncertainty for
both Indian players and outside investors."
Smita Jha, leader of PwC India's Entertainment and Media practice, said
"Satellite capacity constraints impede the growth momentum of the Indian
TV sector and impact the ecosystem of the industry. The capacity crunch could
restrict the launch of local regional channels and special interest channels
and could lead to a distortion of competitive balances in multiple ways."
The report encourages the Indian government to formulate policies and
processes to spur growth in satellite services, and to explore opening up
additional frequency bands for use by TV industry players. It suggests
measures such as allowing DTH operators more freedom to easily lease more
space on authorized satellites they already use, lengthening the allowable
term of satellite transponder contracts, improving publicly-available market
information from the government and ensuring adequate spectrum is available
for satellite use in India.
The Fact Sheet provides key statistics and data from the Report.
http://www.acnnewswire.com/clientreports/598/0307.pdf
The Report can be downloaded at http://www.casbaa.com/publications
About CASBAA
Established in 1991, CASBAA is the Association for digital multichannel TV,
content, platforms, advertising and video delivery across Asia. Spanning 17
geographic markets, CASBAA and its Members reach over 445 million households
and businesses connected to pay-TV systems across a footprint ranging from
China to Australasia, Japan to Pakistan. The CASBAA mission is to promote the
growth of multichannel TV and video content through industry information,
networking exchanges and events while promoting global best practices. To view
the full list of CASBAA members, and more information, please visit
www.casbaa.com .
About PwC
PwC* helps organisations and individuals create the value they're looking
for. We're a network of firms in 158 countries with more than 180,000
people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax and advisory
services. PwC India refers to the network of PwC firms in India, having
offices in: Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata,
Mumbai and Pune. For more information about PwC India's service
offerings, please visit www.pwc.in.
* PwC refers to PwC India and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each
member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for
further details.
For enquiries, please contact:
Nandini Chatterjee
PwC India
Nandini.Chatterjee@in,pwc.com
Desmond Chung
CASBAA
Tel: +852 3929-1712
desmond@casbaa.com
CASBAA
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